Tagged: Vault Comics

Joe Corallo: Songs For The Dead

Many of you who are familiar with this column know I’ve been enjoying a new publisher this year quite a bit – Vault Comics. I’ve written about them and interviewed a couple of different creative teams on their books in the past few months or so. Although most of their output has been in science fiction they do have a new title, Songs For The Dead, in the fantasy genre hitting stores this winter. I got to interview the team of this new fantasy comic including Mike Heron, Andrea Fort and Sam Beck.

JC: Hey Mike, Andrea, and Sam! Thank you for taking the time to chat with me. First things first; what’s each of your elevator pitches for Songs For The Dead?

Mike: Songs for the Dead is the story of a young bard named Bethany, who just so happens to be a necromancer. She’s on a one-woman quest across a foreign land to prove to the world that necromancers are capable of more than creepy and evil things by helping others along the way!

Andrea: Songs for the Dead is the story of an optimistic young woman named Bethany who happens to be a necromancer. But Bethany believes that her power can be used for good, and she sets out to prove that necromancers aren’t all as evil as the stereotypes by trying to become a hero.

Sam: A really happy-go-lucky necromancer just wants to be the hero.

JC: So how did you all meet and decide to do this comic together?

Mike: Andrea and I met online a few years ago, and one of the things we really connected over was both being creative people. Despite having different backgrounds in our expertise, and having never made a comic book before, we felt like it was the best way to tell the story of Songs for the Dead. Sam we found after an exhaustive search for the right artist to compliment our story – we lucked out and found someone who is the perfect fit!

Andrea: As Mike mentioned, we met online and one of our many similarities was our love of storytelling. We had been discussing a collaboration of some kind when the idea for Songs for the Dead came up. We did some brainstorming, some world-building and then we went looking for an artist who could help us bring our vision to life, we are amazingly lucky to have found Sam!

Sam: Andrea and Mike contacted me after finding me through deviantART of all places! We all live in the Greater Toronto Area so we’re able to meet up and talk through the comic in person which has been amazing. It really makes a difference in building a team.

JC: Bethany is not what most people think of when they think of a necromancer. How did Bethany come to be? Has she changed must from her initial concept? And what other fantasy characters helped influence her creation?

Mike: The genesis of the idea is really just that: I had the idea for an unassuming necromancer some years ago, before Andrea and I had met. I play a lot of RPGs, and anything with a character creation system really lets my imagination run wild. I landed on this juxtaposition of this scary and forbidden magic in the hands of a bright-eyed and optimistic young girl. The idea persisted and soon I was making notes about it here and there while working on other projects.
Bethany’s concept and appearance have been surprisingly consistent over the years, and a lot of that I credit to Sam, who really just got what we were going for from the beginning.

Andrea: Mike had come up with the idea for Bethany a while back and told me about her when we were discussing possible collaborations. I think he had the idea while he was playing an RPG. I was really into the idea right away! I love subverting expectations and defying stereotypes, so I was thrilled to work on building and developing a character like Bethany who is so much more than she appears.

Sam: Like Mike said Bethany’s character has been pretty consistent, I think we nailed down her look almost on the very first test page. Which is really a testament to how well Mike defined her in just a few words. Her outfit is a bit haphazard which reflects on her style of adventuring.

JC: Speaking of influences, what fantasy worlds and stories either helped inspire this story or inspire any of you to want to tell a fantasy story?

Mike: Well as I mentioned, Andrea and I are huge RPG fans. We’re also huge fantasy fans, so there’s really a mix of everything in there! Some Elder Scrolls, some D&D, some Dragon Age, some Witcher, some LOTR – we really tried to take inspiration from the best.

Andrea: I think all three of us really love genre, and especially fantasy stories. I am personally a massive fan of Tolkien’s writing and I think that informs a lot of my contribution to Songs. I also love the Dragon Age franchise and the way you discover lore throughout the narrative.

Sam: We’re all pretty big RPG fans, so my influences overlap with the rest of the team quite a bit. I also read a lot of historical fiction which has helped me stay in the right mindset for this kind of fantasy story. I strive to make characters and backgrounds feel like part of a larger world, beyond what’s shown in a framed panel.

JC: Elissar plays the role of the brash brawler. Being that there are quite a few fantasy archetype characters while having just a couple of protagonists to start, what made you all decide Elissar would be a fighter rather than a ranger, rogue, paladin, etc?

Mike: That’s an interesting question! I’d say Elissar’s class is really informed by her personality. Elissar was actually a somewhat late addition to the story, as the original drafts of Songs for the Dead were more about Bethany being this lone wanderer. Andrea and I decided eventually that Bethany needed a companion, who was also a bit of a foil for her, something to balance out her overwhelming optimism. So when we started fleshing out who Elissar was and what she needed to be, her role as a Fighter just kinda fell into place.

Andrea: I love this question! And I love talking about Elissar! As Mike said, we decided that Bethany needed a companion. We wanted readers not only to have a different perspective of the world, but also someone whose personality would push Bethany’s personal growth. I really wanted to see Bethany’s upstanding morality challenged by someone who was much colder and more calculating, I wanted someone who was morally ambiguous. As we were developing that character, she naturally took the form of a fighter. Besides, Elissar’s eagerness to draw her sword is very useful in adding corpses for Bethany to raise to the story!

Sam: I always felt that Elissar was a big mash-up of a lot of archetypes; fighter, rogue, mercenary. I remember when I was coming up with a character design her armour matched, and the first piece of feedback was to mix it up. She’s not put together at all, that’s what makes her really fun and surprising.

JC: Songs For The Dead started out as a web comic. Why did you all feel that was the best place to start?

Mike: We didn’t, actually! Songs made its original debut in print and through digital release via comiXology.

Andrea: Songs for the Dead was released on comiXology, and then in print shortly after. Because of how limited our resources were, those original print versions are very scarce, but they’re out there! We wanted to get our book onto comiXology early on because we had so few resources that we really didn’t know how else to get our book to people. We believed in it, and we wanted people to hopefully read it and love the characters and world the way we do, so a huge online distributor like comiXology just made the most sense.

JC: Ah, sorry! I was conflating an online indie comics presence with web comics. I would like to ask you though, the web comic scene in general seems way more receptive to fantasy comics in general compared to the traditional floppy market. Why do you all think that is?

Mike: I find that fantasy comics, especially those released in print, tend to fall into certain traps that can alienate readers fairly quickly. Lots of lore dumps and didactic panels. Andrea and I consciously tried to avoid this when we started writing Songs, we really wanted the comic to focus more on the characters and show you what they’re all about. We actually have quite the extensive lore written up behind-the-scenes, but our plan is to slowly release it through the story.

Andrea: That’s a good question, and one I ask myself frequently. I wish I really knew why. I know that I personally sometimes shy away from fantasy stories because I worry that they’ll be derivative. There are so many great stories, but they can feel too much like the great fantasies that have come before. I really like to see big new ideas and I like to feel challenged by what I read. All of the fantasy webcomics I’ve seen online have been hugely original and I’m sure other readers respond to that, the same way I have.

Sam: Webcomics are a lot more willing to take risks; and fantasy as a genre is so flexible that it’s the perfect platform to take those risks in. There are so many strange and interesting permutations of fantasy and I’m so glad there are creators who want to explore that.

JC: Your comic was picked up by Vault Comics. First off, congrats! Secondly, why is Vault the perfect home for Songs For The Dead?

Mike: Thank you! Honestly, we love everything about Vault Comics. Their catalog to date has been ambitious and engaging. They’ve really made it clear that they care about the artists and their projects, and they’re finding new and exciting ways to get people interested. Ambition was a huge consideration for us when we were considering publishers; Songs was a hugely ambitious endeavour for us that saw us taking some pretty crazy risks in the interest of getting more eyes on our book. We needed someone to match that, and we’re confident we’ve found that in Vault.

Andrea: Thank you! We couldn’t be more excited that Songs for the Dead has found a home at Vault! We love Vault because they love comics as much as we do. They also celebrate new and exciting stories, the way we do. It’s an honour to be included in their catalogue. We took a lot of risks trying to tell this story, we were looking for a publisher who would was as dedicated as we are and the team at Vault is the best.

JC: As someone who’s done a few creator owned comics in the past I understand how sometimes when you hit your stride it’s tempting to look back and think what you may have done differently. Is there anything any of you either may have done differently early on with Songs For The Dead or anything that you decided not to do and are glad you stuck with your instincts?

Mike: Oh yeah, there’s tons. In terms of production, there’s a lot of missteps Andrea and I took when we got started, being new to the business and all. At first, we were really eager to get started, and we were even close on a couple of occasions when our artists fell through. It’s funny to think how bummed we were at the time, but in retrospect it was absolutely for the best. Not only for finding Sam, but for the fine tuning we did on the script that made all the difference in the final product.

Andrea: Looking back to when we started, I see so many little things that could change, and so many times we could have simplified our process. When we started, Mike and I had never worked with comics or this kind or storytelling before, we learned as we went. It was intimidating and tough, but to come out with something like Songs was really rewarding. There were a lot of hiccups and I think we chose the hard way a few times, but every bump in the road helped us learn. I wouldn’t change things, simply because the more we struggle the better we’re getting. Plus, we are yet to make the same mistake twice (knock on wood).

Sam: Ask any artist if they can change something in their old work and they will say yes! I had really just entered the comic scene when I started working on Songs for the Dead, so I’ve grown a lot as an artist since then. It’s nice to reflect on where you’ve come from and apply what you’ve learned to future work.

JC: Before we wrap this up, is there anything else anyone would like to add?

Mike: Probably just to say thank you again to everyone who has supported Songs thus far. As lifelong creative people and newbies to the industry, I really can’t tell you what it’s meant seeing people excited about our book and these characters. Moving forward with Vault we’re really excited about the future, and whether you’re new to Songs or are anxiously awaiting the next part of the story, we hope you’ll come along for the ride.

Andrea: I take every opportunity I have to say thank you. Thank you to our amazing team including Nick Robles, Deron Bennett and AndWorld Design, Tess Fowler and Tamra Bonvillain, as well as Vault for believing in us. Of course, to our friends and families who don’t see us as often because we eat, sleep and live all things Songs for the Dead. Thank you to all these incredible people for putting up with Mike and I. Songs wouldn’t exist without them.

Sam: I’m really thankful that Andrea and Mike took a chance with me as their artist. I was really green when I started and they trusted me with their comic-children! I’m so excited to see where Songs for the Dead goes.

JC: Thank you all so much for your time! Where can people find more information on Songs For The Dead and when can they get copies from Vault Comics?

Mike: You can follow all of our social media, on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook at @songscomic, or check out our website at songsforthedead.com! Songs for the Dead relaunches in January 2018, but you can pre-order at your local comic shop NOW – and you totally should!!

Andrea: We’re on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram as @songscomic, and our website is songsforthedead.com. Book one launches on January 31st, 2018 under Vault Comics so make sure you pre-order it now!

Joe Corallo: Maxwell’s Demons

Vault Comics is one of the biggest stories on the indie comics scene this year. With publisher Damian Wassel and editor-in-chief Adrian Wassel at the helm, Vault has created a line of science fiction and fantasy comics with seasoned veterans like Tim Daniel doing design and art direction as well as books like Fissure and rising stars including David Booher on Powerless and Alien Bounty Hunter (with producer Mark Wahlberg) and Natasha Alterici on Heathen.

This past week I was able to chat with Deniz Camp and Vittorio Astone about their new comic at Vault, Maxwell’s Demons.

JOE: What’s the elevator pitch for Maxwell’s Demons? What’s the hook?

DENIZ: Maxwell’s Demons is the story of Maxwell Maas, the greatest mind of his generation. Told in a series of standalone stories, each focused on Max at a different point in his life and arranged non-chronologically, it is the story of transformational greatness, as a boy of cosmic importance struggles against the horrors and wonders of a science fiction universe. He’ll journey to other universes, face alien assassins, fall in love, and confront his own demons in as mind-bending a fashion as possible. At the heart of it all is Max himself, his own abilities and inadequacies, and the changes he goes through, externally and internally.

VITTORIO: Nothing to add here, Deniz summed up the story perfectly.

JOE: How did this book come together? Were you both already collaborating, did you find each other?

DENIZ: I wrote what would eventually become the first issue of Maxwell’s Demons on my own. It was shorter, about 12 pages. I found Vittorio while browsing DeviantArt and was immediately struck by his work, his ability to capture scale and shadow and light. All of these, I knew, would be crucial to Maxwell’s Demons, so I browbeat him into working with me! When he said he was game, I expanded the page count and added content, and when he said he was game for more, I built a bigger, more intricate pitch for the series and the world, knowing that he could handle anything I asked of him. So far, he’s destroyed every expectation and hope I had! Vittorio will have his own take, I’m sure!

VITTORIO: Before Deniz contacted me, I had a completely different idea regarding my career. As many Italian artists, my goal was to find a job in the French comic book market, so, at the beginning, Maxwell’s Demons should’ve been just a brief diversion for me. But the potential of this series and Deniz’s talent convinced me to see where this story goes – and being a part of i

DENIZ: Vittorio says “talent”, but what he’s not saying is he means my talent for kidnapping his loved ones and holding them hostage. All’s well that ends well, though!

JOE: Well whatever you did, it’s working! So what made Vault Comics the perfect home for Maxwell’s Demons?

DENIZ: Vault has been amazing! At its core, Vault is a family and feels as such. I talked to Adrian and Damian (EiC and Publisher of Vault, respectively) just after their coming out announcement. By then we had already been producing Maxwell’s ourselves, and had many completed pages to show. They’ve been amazingly supportive of the book, and of us as creatives. They understood what we were going for right from the start, and gave us the freedom to pursue our most avant garde and strange formal ambitions, while helping us keep the story and the characters clear. It’s a better book for their involvement; richer, clearer, and more intentional. I’m incredibly grateful, and I think spoiled for all other publishers!

VITTORIO: Vault is fantastic! Adrian and Damian are always helping us in the creative process with their advice. And working alongside many talented artists is something that really pushes me to give my best. In general our working environment is always fresh and cheerful, except for when
Deniz writes too much complex stories and I have to menace him with a voodoo doll. True story.

DENIZ: This is a true story, but this ever-expanding rash and string of bad luck is a small price to pay for great comics!

JOE: I’m glad to see it’s working out! I also see a little bit of an Adam Strange influence in Maxwell’s Demons. What were some of your influences both in the story and the aesthetic?

DENIZ: Maxwell’s Demons was influenced by a lot of science fiction, and some of that pulpy scifi was in the DNA of the first issue, especially in the aesthetic: Flash Gordon (He’s a miracle!!), Buck Rogers, Adam Strange, John Carter, etc. But Maxwell’s Demons is a modern book, and we’re pulling from a diverse range of modern and retro influences to create something that feels new, and (hopefully) surprising. Rather than another world, in the first issue.

VITTORIO: Like Deniz said, pulp sci-fi was a big portion of our inspiration. Calvin and Hobbes was too. Max is, in fact, very much like Calvin, save from the fact that Calvin is often visiting other worlds just in his imagination. Also, we wanted his design to be somewhat naive, to better contrast with the dark tones of the story.

JOE: Maxwell himself is portrayed as a very lonely, yet determined kid. How did you both handle balancing this on the page for the readers to create a flawed and troubled yet sympathetic protagonist?

DENIZ: We’re all flawed, troubled-yet-sympathetic protagonists, right? (Well, everyone except Martin Shkreli, maybe. He F***** w/ the Wu Tang Clan).
Despite the absurd scifi trappings, Maxwell’s Demons is a very personal book for me, and I think it has the potential to be personal for a lot of readers. We’ve all felt isolated, by our intelligence or our inadequacies or interests or appearance. We’ve all had our best moments, and our worst. What I’m hoping to do with not just Max, but with all the characters in the book, is to show that dimensionality, to constantly upturn your understanding of the characters and your expectations as a reader. At the heart of Maxwell’s Demons is the thesis that not only do people change over time, but how the world sees them changes over time, too, as our understanding grows, or as the human being becomes subsumed by the legacy they leave behind.

VITTORIO: I think every one of us felt, at least once in his lifetime, alone because the way he saw the world. It’s very common when you’re a teenager, I think.
Max it’s defined not only by his intelligence and his adventures, but also by the regular, boring (often cruel) world around him, which is the reason why he built a portal to new universes in his closet.

DENIZ: Our metaphors are…unsubtle. :)

JOE: Maxwell has a very complicated relationship with his father. How did you both work on conveying this relationship in a way that would ring true to readers that may also have complicated relationships with family?

DENIZ: You can’t ever know how people will take these things, but speaking for myself: I wrote it from my own experience. When you’re a child, the world is a place of stark contrasts; people are heroes or they’re villains. The older you get, the more you come to understand that everyone’s just doing the best they can with what they’ve got. As a boy, even a very brilliant boy, I’m not sure Max can see it that way, but we can.

VITTORIO: In issue 1 Max’s father is very two-dimensional. But as the story goes and grows (and Max with it), we start to better explore and know this character, to see that he’s not just bad, but a complex, yet flawed, human. After we completed issue 1, Deniz wrote a beautiful epilogue to the story, to have a better view on him.

DENIZ: Most of issue 1 is told from Max’s perspective, and his father is very much one thing from Max’s perspective. But with the backup we’re able to get a story from Max’s father’s perspective, and that’s necessarily smaller, more intimate, with a less sharply defined morality.

JOE: Over the course of the first issue one thing I did notice was that there didn’t seem to be any female characters. While Maxwell’s Demons at its core is about a struggle between a father and son, will we be seeing any female characters introduced in future issues?

DENIZ: Yes! One particular female figure hangs over the whole series, but we’ll meet a very powerful female character in issue 2, and another (very different, but equally powerful) female character in issue 4. Vittorio has done an amazing job designing both, I might add.

VITTORIO: As Deniz said, later on the series we’ll see important female characters too. Which is good, because they are the one I usually have more fun designing!

JOE: Many comics today often feel that they are written for the trade paperback which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. We tend to get first issues with big cliffhangers that leave the reader unable to really tell you what the first issue was about. Here, while Maxwell’s Demons doesn’t answer all your questions, it does feel like a complete story which is very refreshing. What made you both decide to take this route with the series?

DENIZ: Thanks for saying so! I love comics as a medium, and I believe in writing to the medium and the format. Maxwell’s Demons is coming out in 24 page single issues, and each of those issues will be complete story. I want readers to come back because of the content, not because they got a 1/5th sliver of a story that’s unsatisfying on its own. The more you read, the more you’ll see that we’re actually telling one complex narrative, with connections and plot points that modify the issues that come before and foreshadow what comes after, but you can pick up any individual issue and get a complete story. In keeping with “writing to the medium”, future issues will feature a lot of experimentation in layout and the narrative tools that are unique to comics.

VITTORIO: I think this is one of Maxwell’s Demons’ strengths. Each issue is about a given moment in Max’s life, and they can be very far away in time from each other (you’ll see in issue 2!), so having a complete story simply was the best choice of narration.

JOE: Thank you both so much for taking the time to chat with me! Before we wrap up, is there anything else you’d like to add?

DENIZ: Just that we’ve poured our hearts and souls and brains into this book, and I genuinely believe it’s going to be one of the most ambitious and beautiful books you’ll read this year. I hope you’ll give us a chance! Thanks for the opportunity, Joe!

VITTORIO: ’Max’ is the biggest and greatest project I’ve worked on so far and I’m proud of it and my co-workers! Hope you’ll like it!

Maxwell’s Demons hits comic shops October 11th.

Joe Corallo: Powerless And Super

Back in February, a new comics publisher debuted called Vault Comics They hit the ground running with Fissure by Tim Daniel and Patricio Delpeche. Focusing on telling fresh, fast paced science fiction and fantasy stories, Vault has managed the Herculean feat of launching six different comic book series within three months and I’ve picked up all of them.

One of those series, Powerless, gives us a fresh take on the idea of superheroes; something you’ll rarely hear me say. I got the chance to talk with Powerless creator/writer David M. Booher and artist Nathan C. Gooden.

Joe Corallo: Let’s start with the basics. For those who aren’t familiar, what’s each of your elevator pitches for Powerless?
David Booher: Tough question because I could go on for days about this story. Here’s the 37-second pitch: We’ve flipped the idea of superpowers on its head. Every single person on the planet has some extraordinary ability, but a virus is spreading that takes away the powers of those infected. Using elite agents, the government has instituted Quarantine and the infected are starting to fight back violently. Our main characters find themselves caught right in the middle.
Nathan Gooden: Powerless is a world that asks the question: Do superpowers really solve any of the world’s issues? Does the ability to switch places with anyone or help the life of a depressed teenager, only add fuel to the flames of a brewing war? It’s a character-driven thrill ride that will answer these questions and many more.
JC: What was the genesis of this project? When did you each get involved?
DB: I created the series, but I’ve actually been nurturing the concept for years now. It sprang from my love of stories about people with extraordinary powers, from traditional superheroes to novels like Firestarter and Carrie by Stephen King. With so much out there, I took it as a challenge to create something fresh and different. It came to me – what if there were no superheroes because everyone had powers? What if I didn’t? From there it snowballed: How would I survive in that world? Where would I find power? How would others look at me? And on and on.
NG: I met David four years ago at the San Diego Comic-Con and we immediately hit it off. His pitch completely sold us on the idea of Powerless. We knew we were going to publish it, but I was even more honored and humbled, to have David ask me to do the art for the series.
JC: Powerless takes place in a world with a wide range of existing superhuman powers. What kind of powers can people expect to see explored and why did you pick the powers that you did?
DB: Again, it was about doing something that felt new. So, yeah, readers will see powers they’ve probably seen before – controlling elements, super speed, and telekinesis. But how about a million telekinetics? Or five million pyrokinetics? In a world where a superpower is no longer extraordinary, no one’s impressed that you can start fires. Now, how good you are with that power? That’s a different story. To use a sports analogy: I can throw a baseball over home plate, but will I ever be a pro pitcher? Hell, no. Pros have spent years training. The same with powers – lots of people might be able to do a certain thing, but you better believe there are pros who have perfected it.
Then there are the rarer powers. Switch is a modified teleporter who can swap places within anyone in her line of sight. Billy is a chronokinetic with the ability to go back in time 37 seconds. We carefully selected these powers because they have consequences for these characters as the story goes on. Our whole team has spent hours and hours talking about this world to figure out how it would really work. It’s been a ton of fun!
NG: I have always believed in taking the reader somewhere they have never been. So pushing the boundaries of super powers was such a treat. Without giving too much away, I’d like to call attention to one of my favorite characters, Grant Porter. He’s a mid level Serokinetic who can extract blood from organisms in a unique way. It will make for some beautiful, but gruesome brutality.
JC: Why Vault Comics?
DB: Long before Vault existed, I met Adrian Wassel (editor) and Damian Wassel (publisher) along with Nathan at conventions when they were publishing gorgeous graphic novels under a different imprint. I loved their books so much I pitched Powerless to them. The timing couldn’t have been better because they were already talking about creating Vault Comics. Then Nathan came on board as the artist and we were off to the races. They’ve been nothing but amazing from the very beginning.
NG: Well I have been a part of Vault Comics since day one, literally. Adrian and Damian are my very close cousins (more like brothers), so it was a no brainer to be part of the team and help the family.
JC: A common critique of mainstream comics lately is that there isn’t enough story in individual issues. That’s certainly not the case here with Powerless which is dense in story as well as panels and dialogue. What drove the decision to pack so much into the first issue of Powerless and what were the benefits and challenges of that?
DB: I’ll let Nathan talk about page layouts, since I almost always defer to him on that. For my part, I didn’t really make a conscious decision about how much or how little to put in the first issue. It was all dictated by the story. We had 28 pages to create a complex, nuanced world on the brink of transformation and characters who react to it in very different ways. And then we had to overlay all of that with superhuman abilities. There was a lot of ground to cover, and hopefully issue one balances all of that to hook readers. As the series moves forward, we do open up the pages and dialogue a bit now that the world has been established.
NG: I wanted to get the readers into the world as fast as possible so we could prove to them that we are going off the beaten path. You won’t have to invest months only to get a small taste. I went with an almost kaleidoscope panel design to fill this issue with as much depth and detail as humanly possible, sometimes leaving Deron with the hardest job of all. As David stated, the issues do intentionally open up as they progress and the panels and compositions will reflect that.
JC: To follow up on that, could you all discuss how you went about laying out the more complex pages and what was the most complex page to put together from the first issue?
DB: One thing I love about Nathan’s art (among so many things!) is his use of nontraditional page layouts. This is a non-traditional story, so it fits perfectly. We didn’t make Deron’s lettering job easy at all, but he sure made it look that way. Beyond those things, I’ll let Nathan and tell you which pages in the first issue drove him nuts!
NG: Pages 13 and 14 gave me a very big challenge. This is the first major conflict and has several Quarantine agents using their powers at the same time. It was a struggle to not make it just a big glowing mess or fists and kicks. As far as layout, I really wanted to walk the line of overwhelming the reader, without kicking them out of the book.
JC: While reading Powerless #1 I interpreted influence from events in American history such as the internment of Japanese Americans in World War II, the AIDS epidemic, and politics post 9-11. How did these aspects of history impact the story of Powerless and what other historical and political events played a role in creating this story?
DB: As I wrote the scripts, of course lots of these historical events were in the back of my mind. As a gay creator, I probably thought most about the AIDS crisis and the horrible treatment of LGBT people that still happens today. Honestly, it’s been hard to stay ahead of all the crazy social and political events happening right now. I mean, if I wrote some of our current events into a script, I’d get laughed out of my editor’s office. That said, the political and social aspects of Powerless are there, but they provide the backdrop for the very personal stories of these characters and how they react to each other and the world around them.
NG: I think David covered that very well. I would just add, those exact thoughts are what drew me to the series in the first place.
JC: What fictional stories, comics or otherwise, influenced Powerless as well your other works?
DB: I think everything I read or see influences me in some way. I was an 80’s kid and I still love just about everything from that decade. Lately I’ve been focused on reading a lot of what Image, IDW, Black Mask, and of course Vault have been publishing. It’s incredible to watch indie creators push the boundaries of comics and see indie publishers support that. I will give a shout-out to IDW’s Locke & Key by Joe Hill. A masterpiece of comic storytelling.
NG: I’d have to say, just my love for all things X-Men as a child. I’d have to give a huge shout out to Saga‘s creators, Brian K Vaughan and Fiona Staples for really reigniting my creative fire.
JC: There are quite a few different factions in this comic leading to a wide range of outfits and uniforms. Can you discuss the process behind developing these outfits and uniforms? Any nods to uniforms from stories you love?
DB: I’ll let Nathan field this one. Like page layouts, I left most of the character design in his capable hands. Seeing the amazing results, I’m glad I did!
NG: Oh, I could go on for days about the design of these characters but I will try and focus in on the most important among them, Quarantine. I wanted this to feel like an oppressive version of Apple’s marketing. Very recognizable logo that will be spread across the globe by force. The uniforms themselves, I wanted a modern Nazi feel. Crisp clean uniforms, where individuality is reserved for those of high rank. The boots and capes for decoration of higher ranking officials. I also had to think of how clothing would change in a world where people could burst themselves into flames or change their body mass in the matter of seconds.
JC: Diversity has been a hot topic in comics lately. Judging by the diverse group of characters featured in Powerless, diversity is important to you all. How did you go about creating a diverse cast of characters and why is diversity in comics important to you?
DB: For me, there was no question but to include a diverse cast. Powerless exists in a world very much like ours, and diversity is part of that. I also wanted to create characters that are relatable for all readers. But it’s not just about diversity for diversity’s sake. If I included characters with all the same background and experiences, they’d just agree on everything. How boring would that be? When characters start from different places, that’s when things get interesting.
NG: Powerless is an exploration into civil rights. It’s only natural to try and see it from as many sides as possible. Visually, I wanted every reader to have the chance to see themselves in at least one of the main characters. Diversity has always played a critical role in my life. I’m biracial, and often wondered as a child, why the heroes or characters didn’t look like me. Sure, there were blonde hair and blue eyed characters that look like my mother’s side of the family. Darker skinned characters that resembled that of my father’s side, but where was the character that looked like me?
Sorry for rambling, but diversity was important to me when doing all of the designs for the world.

JC: It’s fine, I don’t mind rambling! It was great hearing what you both have to say about diversity. Before we wrap this up, could you tell us where people can get a copy of Powerless #1 and when Powerless #2 will be available?
DB: Issue #1 is on shelves now at comic shops. Issue #2 will be on shelves tomorrow!
NG: Issue #1 is available everywhere Diamond distributes, just ask your local comic shop. Issue #2 is out Wednesday April 26th. Also, A huge shout out to Oliver Ridge and Blood Moon, who helped make this all possible.

JC: Thank you both so much for taking the time to chat with me, and for everyone reading this interview, go check out Powerless from these guys and letterer Deron Bennett as well as the rest of Vault Comics’ line-up!

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